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--> --> Oct. 30: The salt of the Earth By Jeff Cheek When she was Prime Minister of Israel, Golde Meir made a rueful comment about Moses. Why did he wander for 40 years, then select the Jewish homeland in the only place in the Near East that did not have one drop of petroleum? In truth, Israel is an arid, resources-poor country. It is a land of "milk and honey" only if there is rain. Which leads to an obvious question: Why would the Roman Empire expend so much gold and manpower to conquer and control a land which cost so much to administer? Part of the answer is strategic. Israel was part of the land bridge to the riches of Egypt. Israel also contained one resource, invaluable at that time. Salt. The Dead Sea is the most saline body of water on Earth. Salt workers dug ditches to settling pens along the shore. The blazing sun evaporated the seawater, leaving a layer of salt to be harvested. The Romans needed salt for baking bread and making beer, and to preserve meat, but they could not claim credit for discovering that salt was a preservative. According to legend, this discovery was made centuries earlier by Mesopotamians. A wounded pig ran squealing into the Persian Gulf. When his body was recovered someone noted that the salty meat did not spoil. Salt was so valuable that Roman soldiers were sometimes paid in salt. "Salarium" is "salt money" in Latin. This is the root of our word "salary". Salt also influenced Roman foreign policy. They conquered Austria in 100 BC to get the salt mines there. The city they founded to exploit this resource is now Salzburg, or "salt mountain." The Romans were not alone in paying their warriors with salt. Chinese Emperors issued little cakes of salt, each bearing the Emperor's name or likeness, which were paid to their soldiers and sometimes circulated as money. Salt is essential to life, but it can be tricky. Too little salt and one can die of heat stroke. The normal intake of a healthy adult is one third of an ounce per day. A quarter pound dose can be fatal, causing a condition called hypernatrimea. Salt played a major role in our revolution. On December 29, 1777, Washington's battered army of 11,000 stumbled into winter quarters at Valley Forge. They had been badly whipped at the battles of Brandywine Creek and Germantown. The British occupied Philadelphia. The Continental Congress fled to York, Pennsylvania. Perhaps the biggest blow was this: General Howe had captured all of Washington's salt. There was no salt for their food or for preserving fresh meat. The long bitter winter and disease took their toll. An estimated 2,000 rebel soldiers perished at Valley Forge. The figure is inexact because the dead were buried in secret so that the British spies would not learn our strength. Salt was an economic bonanza for the British in India. They levied a huge import duty on salt, then to guarantee their monopoly, passed laws making it a crime for Indians to boil sea water to make salt. Mahatma Gandhi turned salt into a political weapon. In 1930 he led his famous 165-mile march to the Arabian Sea, then challenged the authorities to arrest him for making salt. The monopoly was soon broken, and India became independent in 1947. Salt pork and mustard greens is an ordinary dish, but the mustard greens give it a special, tangy flavor. INGREDIENTS: 1/2 pound salt pork 16 cups mustard greens PREPARATION: Cut pork into thin strips. Cover and simmer in 8 cups water for 45 minutes. Wash greens; add to pot. Cover and simmer for another 45 minutes. Serve. Tastes great with cornbread, and the "pot liquor" is loaded with vitamins! Jeff Cheek lives in Medford. Email your... Technical questions & comments to: WebMaster Daily Tidings editorial comments & questions to: Editor Visit our other Oregon Newspapers... | Albany Democrat-Herald | Ashland Daily Tidings | Corvallis Gazette-Times | | Lebanon Express | Newport News-Times | Springfield News | Cottage Grove Sentinel | Ashland Daily Tidings 1661 Siskiyou Blvd. Ashland, OR 97520 Telephone 541-482-3456 © Copyright 2001 Lee Northwest Publishing